A Slytherin Surprise
by Healer Pomfrey
Summary: Hermione listens to the Slytherins talk about house-elves and becomes upset enough to develop a complicated charm to get her revenge. Set in third year, completely AU, rating because of bad language in the first part.


**A Slytherin Surprise**

**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

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**For Jessica – Happy Birthday!  
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Hermione, a third year Gryffindor student and residing insufferable know-it-all of Hogwarts, looked up from the old tome she was just skimming, when she heard several people enter the library, and frowned when someone began to talk loud enough for her to understand every word.

"These summer holidays were awful," a voice that sounded like that of Draco Malfoy, complained. "I always used to play Quidditch with Dobby, but since Potter," he spat the name in disgust, "saw fit to rob us of that little shit, I had nothing to play with."

"You played Quidditch with a house-elf?" another voice asked in apparent disbelief.

"Oh well, I used him as the Quaffle of course," Draco replied, snickering.

"Right, that's what they're good for," a third voice agreed.

'_I can't believe it_,' Hermione thought in disgust and anger as the conversation continued. She firmly placed the Herbology book back into the shelf and stepped over to the Charms section, noticing from the corner of her eyes that nearly all of her Slytherin classmates were participating in the conversation that she had overheard. '_I wonder where Madam Pince is,_' she thought. '_Just wait, Malfoy and Co. I'll show you something_,' she decided and began to engage herself into an intensive study of Charms and house-elf knowledge.

Shortly after the winter holidays, during which Hermione had the opportunity to plan her revenge on the Slytherins in detail, she was contented enough with her self-invented charm to cast it. During their Transfiguration class, she unobtrusively waved her wand towards the side of the classroom, where the Slytherin third years were sitting, and mumbled the incantation, on which she had worked for four months, before she quickly concentrated on the task that her favourite professor had assigned.

'_Thank Merlin I put the time delay into the charm_,' she mused as she pulled Professor McGonagall into a conversation, right before her charm began to take effect and all of her Slytherin classmates transformed into house-elves. Their faces still resembled their original human form, and their eyes held still the same colour. However, they had hardly any hair, and they were wearing an outfit similar to the Hogwarts elves.

The Gryffindor part of the class roared with laughter, causing the professor to turn around, eyeing the other half of the class in surprise. However, as much as Professor McGonagall tried to reverse the charm or use a Transfiguration spell to help the students, it was not possible, and even at the end of the class, the Slytherin third years were still house-elves.

"Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall addressed the house-elf turned student, who was sitting closest to her.

"Yes, Mistress Professor McGonagall, what can I do for you?" Draco replied politely, and the Gryffindors burst out laughing, as they saw him bow deeply towards their Head of House.

Even the Transfiguration teacher could hardly hide a grin as she instructed the house-elf group to go to the hospital wing. "I'll send the Headmaster over; maybe he'll be able to help you." With that she dismissed the class.

"No, he won't be able to help. They're charmed to be real house-elves for the time being," Hermione confessed to Harry and Ron, when she pulled them into the common room on their way to the Great Hall.

"That was you?" her friends blurted out in simultaneous disbelief.

"Yes; I researched on the matter since the beginning of the school year," Hermione admitted, chuckling. '_Thank Merlin I have the time-turner. Otherwise it wouldn't have been possible_.'

"So when will they change back?" Ron asked curiously.

Hermione let out a long sigh, deciding that she was not willing yet to let her friends in on everything. "It's supposed to last for a year, but there will be another way, but I'll only tell them later on, maybe at the end of the school year," she said, smirking. "Now, shall we go? It's time for lunch."

"I'll just stay here and take a nap," Harry replied quietly.

"Why?" Ron asked in disbelief.

"I probably caught a cold," Harry replied in a barely audible voice. "I don't feel so well."

Hermione leaned over and quickly pressed the back of her hand against Harry's forehead. "You're a bit warm, Harry. Do you want to go to the hospital wing? I'm sure a Pepperup potion would do wonders."

"Definitely not," Harry replied firmly, unconsciously rubbing his achy forehead.

Suddenly, the concerned expression on Hermione's face was replaced by a grin. "Oh right, I have a better idea," she said and called out, "Malfoy!"

An instant later, a house-elf that somehow resembled Draco appeared in front of the group and asked kindly, "Mistress Granger, what can I do for you?"

"Bring us one dose of Pepperup potion," Hermione demanded.

"Yes, Mistress Granger," the elf replied and popped away only to return instants later with a small phial.

"Thank you," Harry said and gratefully downed the potion.

"You don't have to thank a house-elf," Ron said with disdain, handing Draco his book bag. "Take my bag into my dormitory, Malfoy," he demanded, grinning when the elf bowed and obediently popped away.

Word that the Slytherin third years had been turned into house-elves that were ready to do anything for anyone quickly made its way through Hogwarts, and the students of all four Houses visibly enjoyed to command the group around. Many of them were glad that whatever had happened had hit the Slytherin third years, since that group around Draco Malfoy had harassed many students before.

Unfortunately, the teachers couldn't do anything to change the students back, and secretly they were laughing about the matter as well, assuming that the spell or charm they were under would wear off eventually.

Harry noticed soon that the Pepperup potion had only helped so much, and he skipped the last two classes of the day, Divination and History of Magic, to take a nap on a sofa in the common room, hoping to get warm in front of the fireplace. When Hermione looked in on him after the first afternoon class, she found him curled up under a pile of blankets, shivering violently. His eyes were feverishly glazed over, and his voice sounded rasp as he spoke with her. However, he refused badly to go to the hospital wing.

"Millicent!" she called one of the female Slytherin house-elves.

"Yes, Mistress Granger. What can I do for you?" the elf asked politely, bowing deeply.

"Please check on Harry and stay with him in case he gets worse or needs someone," Hermione instructed her classmate, who respectfully promised to do anything for Harry.

When Hermione returned from her last afternoon class, she found house-elf Millicent kneeling in front of the sofa, gently bathing the boy's flushed face with her hands, while she was taking his temperature with one of the old Muggle thermometers they had in their bathrooms.

"Feels good," Harry mumbled gratefully, apparently enjoying the cold touch to his face.

"I'm glad that you like it, Master Harry," Millicent replied softly and gently plucked the thermometer from his lips. "Master Harry, your fever is very high, and I will go and fetch a fever reducing potion for you if that's all right with you."

"No, don't leave me," Harry mumbled, reaching for the elf's cool hand.

'_I can't believe it_,' Hermione thought, feeling very upset. From the first time she had met Harry, she had fallen in love with the quiet boy, and she couldn't stand seeing one of her classmates cuddle him, even if he was sick. She quickly scribbled a note on a piece of parchment and said, "Millicent, please take this to the owlery and instruct one of the owls to take it to the Headmaster. You're dismissed here now. I'm going to take care of Harry."

Sighing in relief when Millicent complied, Hermione sat on the edge of the sofa and spoke with Harry in a quiet voice, before she called Dobby and asked him to send her Head of House to the common room because Harry was ill. Professor McGonagall thoroughly checked on Harry and informed Hermione that he had probably caught the wizard's flu and that she would take him to the hospital wing.

Knowing that Harry was in good hands with her Head of House and Madam Pomfrey, Hermione left the common room to attend dinner in the Great Hall, innocently looking at the Headmaster when he rose from his chair to address the students.

"Dear Slytherin house-elves, I received an anonymous letter, which said that in order to return to your human forms and stay in that form, you have to attend the class 'Muggle Studies' for at least one year. I'm sorry that I can't offer you any other solution for the time being."

Hermione chuckled, when everyone apart from the Slytherin third years cheered at the Headmaster's announcement.

Three days later, Harry was still stuck in the hospital wing. From half-open glassy eyes he looked at Hermione. "Hi Mione, what are you doing here? Don't you have class?" he croaked.

"No," Hermione chuckled. "I gave up Muggle Studies, because the class is so crowded now that all the Slytherins are participating. I prefer to stay with you until Pomfrey throws me out," she replied in a soft voice and began to gently wipe Harry's flushed face with a cool cloth. "Love you, Harry. Get well soon," she mumbled as Harry drifted back to sleep with a contented smile playing on his lips.

**The End**


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